Jon Rauch
Jon Erich Rauch (born September 27, 1978, in Louisville, Kentucky) is a right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball with the Minnesota Twins and is an Olympic Gold Medalist. At 6' 11" (2.11 m), he is the tallest player in the history of the major leagues.washingtonpost.com Early years Rauch attended and graduated from Oldham County High School. He grew up in Westport, Kentucky. College career Rauch played baseball in college at Morehead State University, where he double majored in physics and business. He was also a member of the social fraternity Sigma Phi Epsilon. Professional career Chicago White Sox He was drafted in the third round of the 1999 amateur draft by the Chicago White Sox. He debuted with the White Sox on April 2, . In 2002, Rauch's first stint in the big leagues resulted in a 6.59 ERA in eight games and six starts. He did not play in the majors in , then returned to the majors in after a strong Triple-A campaign. However, against major league batters he again posted a high ERA of 6.23. In July 2004, Rauch was traded to the Montréal Expos along with Triple-A reliever Gary Majewski for Carl Everett. Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals On August 13, 2004, Rauch hit a home run against the Houston Astros off Roger Clemens, making him the tallest man ever to hit a home run in Major League Baseball. Despite a strong finish to the season in Montréal, Rauch was sent to the minors when the Expos moved to Washington. After putting up better numbers in the minors, Rauch finished the season with the Nationals, used mostly as a reliever, and going 2-4 with a 3.60 ERA. In , Rauch had his best season, posted a 4-5 record, a 3.35 ERA, and appearing in 85 games, second most in the NL. He was Washington's most reliable reliever on a team that finished last in the NL in ERA. He finished highest in the bullpen in games, innings pitched, strikeouts, and batters faced. He finished second only to closer Chad Cordero in saves, ERA, and ERA+. In , Rauch led the Major Leagues in appearances with 88. He finished the year with a 8-4 record, four saves, and a 3.61 ERA. His eight victories led the team in wins, a rarity in baseball. On February 2, , Rauch signed a two-year contract with the Nationals, worth a total of $3.2 million.ESPN - Rauch avoids arbitration, agrees to 2-year deal with Nationals - MLB Before being traded, Rauch spent most of the year as the closer in place of injured Chad Cordero. Rauch won the first game in the history of Nationals Park. Arizona Diamondbacks (2009) On July 22, 2008, Rauch was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks for second base prospect Emilio Bonifacio.D-backs acquire right-hander Rauch from Nats for Bonifacio Minnesota Twins (2009-present) On August 28, 2009, Rauch was traded to the Minnesota Twins for RHP Kevin Mulvey.Twins add bullpen help with Jon Rauch He appeared in 17 games for the Twins before the end of the season, posting a 5-1 record with a 1.72 ERA.Baseball-Reference.com On April 2, 2010, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire named Rauch the team's closer, replacing the injured Joe Nathan.With Nathan out, Twins name Jon Rauch their closer On April 6, 2010 Rauch earned his first save as a Twin with a perfect ninth with two strikeouts versus the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in a 5-3 win. See also *List of Major League Baseball all-time saves leaders References External links *Bio from Washington's Website *[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/video/2007/02/27/VI2007022700420.html 2007 spring training highlight video from The Washington Post] *Haber, Brett. "What I've Learned: Jon Rauch", Washingtonian, August 1, 2008. Category:1978 births Category:Living people Category:Major League Baseball pitchers Category:Chicago White Sox players Category:Montreal Expos players Category:Washington Nationals players Category:Arizona Diamondbacks players Category:Minnesota Twins players Category:Olympic baseball players of the United States Category:Baseball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States Category:Baseball players from Kentucky Category:Bristol White Sox players Category:Winston-Salem Warthogs players Category:Birmingham Barons players Category:Charlotte Knights players Category:Edmonton Trappers players Category:New Orleans Zephyrs players Category:Morehead State University alumni